A Different Perspective

Friday, May 24^th: Tikondwe Freedom Gardens

Friday was a really great day. Liz and I set my phone alarm for 6:15am wake up and realized after we had already woken up, showered, and gotten ready that my phone was somehow an hour ahead the whole time so we truly woke up at 5:15am, a natural mistake Liz and I would make. BUT it was such a blessing that we had so much time on our hands because we had time to appreciate the morning. After we realized that 90% of the group was still asleep Liz decided to go find Tony the cat (Annie’s Lodge has this precious cat that Liz has become obsessed with) and I decided to have some time to myself to journal, which normally I never have time to do so it was really great! We later found out that Amy is also super weird like us and she was also awake at the crack of dawn so we decided to go to breakfast. The breakfast here at Annie’s is so wonderful. We had a variation of some cereals, African coffee, African cocoa, juice, toast, eggs, bananas, and other goodies. I was so excited for the bananas because since here in Africa we can’t eat fruit that doesn’t have a peel or any uncooked vegetables, bananas were in the clear because of that lovely peel.

After breakfast we were off as a group to Tikondwe Freedom Gardens for the day. At the gardens we were greeted by Mrs. Chinkhuntha and her 1 ½ year old granddaughter, Christine. The garden is located in Lumbadzi, Lilongwe, Malawi and is absolutely beautiful, I truly mean beautiful. On the drive there we were in a very dry and non-vegetated part of Lumbadzi and all of a sudden it became a beautiful contrast of greens, oranges, reds, and pinks within minutes. The garden started out as a 100 square meters piece of land and has then expanded to be a 10.81 hectares piece of land, which comes to be about 25 acres. Daniel Chinkhuntha, the son of Mrs. Chinkhuntha gave us a very nice and informative tour of most of the land. There were papaya trees, basil plants, banana trees, eucalyptus, aloe vera plants, and so much more. Amy is an expert at knowing what every type of plant is so she was a little tour guide on the side. The Chinkhuntha family was so sweet and had prepared a traditional Malawi meal for all of us. First we were given lemon grass tea (Obsessed), muffins, and dry-roasted peanuts, which were to die for. I wish my Dad were there because he would have been in love with the peanuts (If I was allowed to smuggle them onto the plane I totally would have Dad). The next meal consisted of chicken in a red sauce, rice, beans, greens, banana sausages, and tsima. Tsima is made of corn flour and water and is a paste like substance; it’s a very special dish in Malawi. We were able to watch one of the women cook the tsima in this outdoor brick kitchen; it was such a great experience.

After we left the gardens we drove back to Annie’s. However, this ride back was a little different than the others. So far in Malawi I have seen hundreds of people on the side of the roads selling things, walking around, playing, or just sitting there. When I say hundreds, I mean hundreds and hundreds. To put a mental picture in your head, just imagine driving on a highway with children as young as 5 years old sitting or playing just inches from the road. The interesting thing though is that while I was feeling scared for them and thinking how in the world people would allow them to be that close to the road, I had never seen happier kids in my life. It was such an eye-opening experience to realize that just because the things people in Africa do aren’t like the things we do in America doesn't make them wrong but just different from what I am usually used to. I am starting to learn and appreciate the different culture Africa has shown me, it’s not only teaching me more about this place but also more about where I call home. While being here, when we drive on the streets we just wave to everyone we see and they just look up at us and smile the most genuine smile and wave back like we have known one another for years. In America, if we waved to everyone driving through town people would think we were just plain crazy and I wish that wasn’t so because waving to them has honestly been my favorite part of this trip so far. They may just be waving because I look like a white Alien but I don’t care, it has made every moment even brighter. Even though I don’t know these people’s names, I instantly feel happy when our eyes meet and they smile that large white smile.